Older stories about the Bee
The 2008 Bee
And another AARP National Spelling Bee has come and gone. This year’s Bee had some special highlights… during the Friday night reception, members of the cast of the Cheyenne Little Theatre’s Melodrama performed a special script they had written just for the spellers (“What’s a 10-letter word that starts with gas….. wrong, it’s automobile”). Spellers got into the spirit of the event, cheering for the hero, and booing the villain. Our special thanks go to the cast and crew – that was a lot of fun.
Little America did an outstanding job of hosting our spellers. The food was excellent and the newly remodeled facility is beautiful.
But the real work began Saturday morning, when we all hunkered down to spell. Word Wizard Brian Greene softened everyone up with the first word “welcome”, but quickly got into more challenging fare such as tramontane, olefin, and losel. By the time we finished the written rounds, we knew everyone there was serious about spelling. You had to get at least 78 correct out of the 100 words to make it to the oral rounds, and that meant clearing words like chough, crwth, recce, and quoits.
Due to a tie for the fifteenth spot, 16 spellers made it, and began the uphill climb to the championship. They breezed past orgeat and tmesis, and conquered pterylae and eriophyid. Suddenly, we were down to the final four spellers. We began a round, and two of them missed their words. That meant a spell-off for third and fourth place. Two spell-off rounds later, and Norman Zucker was declared the fourth place winner, with Scott Firebaugh coming in third. Now only two competitors were left. Each one was given a word, and in a flash, it was over. Larry Grossman was crowned champion, and the best adult speller in the nation. Michael Petrina, Jr. chased him all the way, and came in second.
We had a very unusual footnote to the results this year. The top five finishers in the written rounds finished in the top five in the oral rounds. That hasn’t happened before… we’ll have to see if this was a fluke or the start of a trend.
As for me, it’s off to practice pronounciation for next year’s Bee.
Dave Lerner
Official Pronouncer Guy
AARP National Spelling Bee
A letter from 2008 winner Larry Grossman
When I heard that there was an adult spelling bee, I saw it as an opportunity to do something I’ve wanted to do for more than 40 years. I never was told about the Scripps-Howard National Spelling Bee when I was in junior high, and it had been a nagging regret ever since.
I didn’t have much time to prepare for last year’s (June 2007) AARP Spelling Bee because I didn’t hear about it until the end of March; not to mention the fact that I had heart surgery at the end of May. I still was able to make the finals, however, and managed to place 13th. I came back from Cheyenne with the goal of preparing thoroughly for a year and coming away with first place in the 2008 Spelling Bee.
My first move was to buy the Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary, the source for the Bee. I went through the entire dictionary compiling lists of words that I either didn’t know or that I felt needed studying. I made CD recordings of these lists and spent many, many hours testing myself.
I arrived in Cheyenne this year feeling about as prepared as I could be. With the fortunes smiling on me, I was able to win the contest and the excitement it has created for me, my family, my friends, and North Dakota in general is unbelievable.
As much as I enjoy the excitement created by my win, for me, as a teacher, there’s another equally important aspect. It’s the motivation it’s going to give my students to participate in spelling competitions in the upcoming years. For 31 years I’ve stressed spelling and vocabulary as the building blocks forming the foundation of education. As long as I am able to do so, I will continue to encourage my students to pursue academic excellence through spelling and vocabulary.
Finally, to the 50+ population, I need to say this: Anyone who has an opportunity to participate in this wonderful, entertaining, and edifying AARP National Spelling Bee, jump at the chance. I wouldn’t give up one second of one minute of one hour of the time I’ve been involved in the Bee, and my preparation for the Bee. It’s broadened my world immensely, and it’s given me a chance to meet some brilliant, friendly, fun-loving people.
So ask yourself this question if you’re considering becoming a participant: Why should you let just the young kids have all the fun????
Second place just won’t do
Spelling Bee open to anyone age 50+
What motivates a 58-year-old man to learn the contents of an entire dictionary? Winning.
Although he’s proud of his second-place finish last year, Randy Hilfman plans to do one better this time. The Seattle-area copy editor for Eddie Bauer wants to win AARP The Magazine’s National Spelling Bee June 14 in Cheyenne, Wyo.
He’s not alone in his quest for glory, but he doesn’t seem to mind having some competition.
“It was invigorating to be around so many people who loved words and the English language, and relished the opportunity to demonstrate their spelling skills,” Hilfman says. “It was exciting to compete on a national stage.”
Anyone age 50 or older (except previous winners) can compete.
The Bee was created in 1996 by a group of AARP members from Cheyenne who wanted a fun way to challenge their peers to keep their minds sharp as they age. It has grown over the years, welcoming spellers from nearly every state and Canada too.
While Hilfman and others study intensely, many spellers compete just for fun. Regardless of the motivation, Hilfman says studying for spelling bees offers long-term benefits.
“When preparing for them, you inevitably discover many other words you can incorporate in everyday conversation and in your e-mails, letters and other writing,” he says. “It’s an enjoyable, satisfying way to expand your vocabulary.”
Pam Leininger of Durango, Colo., plans to give Hilfman a run for his money. She will be a novice competitor, but also has been studying for about a year. “No matter how I do at the Bee, I want to say, ‘Thank you, AARP.’ You gave me a reason to challenge myself, and I’ve never felt more alive, smarter or younger!”
More than $1,000 in prizes is up for grabs, and the winner will be flown to New York City to appear on national television.
The 13th annual Bee will be held Saturday, June 14, 2008, at the Little America Hotel and Resort in Cheyenne, Wyoming. The hotel is offering discounted room rates and a free round of golf for spellers and those planning to watch the bee. Hotel reservations can be made by calling 1-800-445-6945. Other lodging options can be found through the Cheyenne Area Convention and Visitors Bureau at Cheyenne.org or by calling 1-800-426-5009.
Registration costs $25 per speller and can be done at aarp.org/SpellingBee or by calling the University of Wyoming Events Line at 1-877-733-3618. Family and friends are welcome to attend and cheer on the spellers (or “unofficially” test their own spelling skills from the audience).
More information, including study and travel tips and a video of the Bee, is available at aarp.org/SpellingBee.
Results from the 2007 Bee
BHARAL SPELLS VICTORY FOR WINNER OF NATIONAL SENIOR SPELLING BEE
After intense competition, Pacific University administrative assistant Susan Hartner Beat 44 Spellers Age 50 and Older from 24 States
CHEYENNE (JUNE 16, 2007) – In the end, it came down to goat vs. dog.
Susan Hartner, 62, had correctly spelled bharal, a goat-like mammal of the Himalayas, and she waited while finalist Randy Hilfman, 56, struggled with vizsla, a breed of Hungarian hunting dog.
When Hilfman missed it, and the bell sounded, Hartner looked surprised and said, “You mean I won?”
Now Hartner has all the bragging rights entitled to the winner of AARP's 2007 National Senior Spelling Bee held today in Cheyenne, Wyo.
“I was sort of stunned. I always anticipate winning because I'm competitive, but realistically I didn't think I would once I heard the words,” Hartner said.
The AARP National Senior Spelling Bee began in 1996 when six AARP members in Cheyenne decided they wanted a fun way to challenge their peers to keep their minds sharp in retirement. In the spirit of inclusiveness, they opened the competition to anyone age 50 or older in the country. At first, most of the competitors hailed from nearby locales, but over the years, the bee has evolved into a renowned national event drawing spellers from as far away as Florida and Alaska. This year marks the first international participant from Canada.
Although the reach of the AARP National Senior Spelling Bee has grown since its inception, the rigor of the word list has remained steady throughout the years.
“It's a tough competition,” AARP Wyoming Director Rita Inoway said. “The volunteers who put together the word list take their jobs seriously and each year it's been matched by the intensity the spellers bring to the bee.”
After 13 rounds, the field of finalists was narrowed to four: Michael Petrina Jr., of Arlington, Va.; Marlene Harry, of Brownsburg, Ind.; Hilfman, of Woodinville, Wash.; and Hartner, of Hillsboro, Ore.
Petrina won the spell-off for third place, leaving Hartner and Hilfman in the 15 th round to battle for the top spot. Hartner correctly spelled bharal, and Hilfman missed vizsla.
As the 2007 Champion of the AARP National Senior Spelling Bee, Hartner will travel to New York to appear live on the CBS Early Show Monday June 18, 2007.
The 2008 National Senior Spelling Bee is scheduled for June 14 in Cheyenne, Wyo. Additional information about the AARP National Senior Spelling Bee is available at www.SeniorSpellingBee.com or by calling 1-866-663-3290.
Click here to view the AARP National Spelling Bee video (runs about 3 min)
Competition intense at AARP sponsored National Senior Spelling Bee - 2006
CHEYENNE, WYOMING (June 17, 2006) - After 20 rounds of rigorous spelling Hal Prince of Palo Alto, Calif. correctly spelled piezometer (an instrument for measuring pressure or compressibility) to win the 2006 National Senior Spelling Bee held in Cheyenne, Wyo. today.
"Part of the reason I did this was to see if it's possible to learn the whole dictionary. It's not," Prince said.
Prince studied by making lists of words and audio tapes of their pronunciation and spelling, which he listened to while commuting to and from work and while running or walking daily. "I think people probably thought I was crazy because I walked along spelling words out loud."
The bee was started a dozen years ago by a group of AARP members in Cheyenne who wanted a way to challenge their friends and fellow retirees to keep their minds sharp as they age. It is open to anyone age 50 or older, except previous winners.
The AARP-sponsored bee is similar in format to the Scripps Howard bee for students, but the 50-plus aged spellers get to miss three words before being knocked out of the competition, they pay their own way to participate in the bee and are competing for a modest purse ($100 for the top speller).
"The money doesn't seem to be the draw," AARP Wyoming Director Rita Inoway said. "Many of the competitors study all year long, and then pay their own way to Cheyenne to compete for the honor of winning the championship title."
The age of competitors ranged from 50 to 86. Spellers arrived in Cheyenne from as far away as Anchorage, Alaska, and Eunice, Louisiana. This year's competition included three state senior spelling champions and the winner of the Dallas-area regional senior spelling bee.
By the end of the written round of 100 words, the top 16 spellers advanced into the finals. All of the finalists spelled 90 or more words correctly.
At the end of the first three rounds of the finals, two contestants were knocked out, leaving 14 to continue in their pursuit.
When pronouncer Dave Lerner said, "schadenfreude," a collective groan filled the room. When he read the definition: an enjoyment gained at the expense of others, the contestants laughed. But contestant Tom Lavery of Ohio, didn't give them a reason to be joyful at his expense; he slowly and cautiously spelled the word correctly. Silence fell over the crowd.
After each contestant received one more word for the fifth round, the number of finalists fell to 13.
Nearly every competitor in the sixth round of the finals missed his or her word. Some of the words that stumped contestants included: thiouracil, eurythermal, dithiocarbamate, quadrumanous, ovalbumin, fluorosis, phytoalexin, zwitterion, and parthenogenesis.
Words that were spelled correctly included: braggadocio, argentiferous, doppelganger, and vinaigrette.
One more competitor dropped, leaving 12. In the next round, seven were correct, four stumbled, but the field remained at 12. At the conclusion of the eighth round, 10 contestants remained.
The ninth round cut the field in half. The final five contestants were: Dr. Darrell Noe of Arlington, Texas; Bill Long of Salem, Ore.; Hal Prince of Palo Alto, Calif.; and Nancy Leasure of Danville, Calif.
After two more rounds, Leasure missed hamantaschen, leaving the four men to continue in the championship quest. The Ohio state senior spelling champion, Tom Lavery, missed his word - crossopterygian -- in the next round, reducing the field to three.
Long struggled with tryptophan, which means a crystalline essential amino acid distributed in protein. Noe missed scorpaenid (a type of bony fish) in the next round to finish in second place. Prince spelled piezometer correctly to win the National Senior Spelling Bee championship without missing a single word in the finals portion of the bee.
Veteran Spelling Champion Wins 2005 National Senior Bee
 CHEYENNE – By winning the National Senior Spelling Bee Saturday, Dave Riddle claimed his third senior spelling bee victory in as many months.
After a competition so fierce that it required a spell-off for second place, Riddle, a 52-year-old attorney from Pacific Grove, Calif., outlasted 16 grueling rounds of oral spelling during the finals of the 2005 National Senior Spelling Bee, held at the AARP Wyoming office in Cheyenne, Wyo.
In the final round, Riddle correctly spelled “ptosis,” which means a sagging or prolapse of an organ or another body part, while the remaining two finalists both missed their words that round, “passementerie.” and “cappelletti.” The tie for second place was broken after LaRae Lawson, 61, of Stockton, Calif., missed “ctenophore” and Bill Long, 53, of Salem, Ore., correctly spelled “logorrhea.”
“Ctenophore” means marine animals having biradial symmetry and “logorrhea” refers to excessive and often incoherent talkativeness or wordiness.
After two hours of oral spelling, a field of 16 finalists narrowed to five people: Riddle, Lawson, Long, and Lenore Collins, 66, of Mentor, Ohio, and Patricia Hanson, 71, of Apple Valley, Calif.
The final five dueled for just 15 minutes before Collins and Hanson were eliminated, pitting two attorneys – Riddle and Long – against Lawson, a proofreader and former medical transcriptionist.
Riddle emerged as champion from an original field of 21 competitors from seven states, including the current Pennsylvania state senior champion and a veteran of the 1965 Scripps National Spelling Bee. Riddle won $150, Long, $50 and a $50 savings bond, and Lawson, $25.
This year’s competitors, all 50 or older, traveled about 27,000 collective miles, round trip, to be part of the Bee.
The National Senior Spelling Bee is hosted by AARP Wyoming, AARP Chapter 310, the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle newspaper, and WyomingNetwork, Inc. The bee was created in 1995 by AARP chapter members in Cheyenne to challenge others to keep their minds active while having fun.
Registration is open for the 2006 National Senior Spelling Bee, June 17, 2006 in Cheyenne.
2004 National Senior Spelling Bee Winner Named in Cheyenne
 CHEYENNE – The 2004 National Senior Spelling Bee sponsored by AARP Wyoming and two local AARP chapters was held in Cheyenne today. Its winner was no novice to spelling bees.
Fifty-two year old Jeff Kirsch of Madison, Wisconsin was flawless during two and a half hours of grueling oral competition, where spellers are allowed to miss up to three words without being eliminated. Kirsch, a Spanish and Portuguese lecturer at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, took top honors after correctly spelling the word: millefiori, which means “a thousand flowers,” and is a term used to describe Italian glasswork where several glass rods are fused together and cut cross-wise to create a floral pattern.
Of the 100 written words Kirsch needed to complete to advance to the final round of oral competition, he only missed three.
This wasn’t Kirsch’s first spelling bee. Thirty-nine years ago, when he was 13-years-old, Kirsch competed in the National Spelling Bee sponsored by Scripps Howard. At that bee, he spelled correctly through seven rounds of competition.
Kirsch said the documentary “Spellbound” is partly responsible for him competing in today’s National Senior Spelling Bee. |
